The First episode of the New Year - 2026 - is here! Happy (belated) New Year and happy listening!

This time, the team dives into a great read with a lot of potential and promise - Lost Fantasy by Curt Piles. Decently new to the field - It's fast, it's bloody, it's artsy, and a light representation of many more IPs out there. If you like killing monsters, you'll definitely love this!

Lost Fantasy - https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lost-fantasy-volume-1-curt-pires/1147384437

0-0-8 Studios - https://0-0-8studios.com/

Spirits of the Month: https://www.wildturkeybourbon.com/en-us/?gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=1687936318&gclid=Cj0KCQiA7fbLBhDJARIsAOAqhsfYcFQ-29_VhFQM_0TBeawY0sScktl6GfgyKB31C5PDfVsY3xYe10oaAiMDEALw_wcB

In this special episode of Novel Spirits, the boys celebrate the holiday season with another great, humorous session of camaraderie:

The votes were in for the Battle of the Genres, revealing our first, unanimous victor. And we reviewed 'The Last Christmas' by Gerry Duggan, a very Deadpool-ish take on a Zombie-filled Christmas - highlighting themes, characters, and artistic style, as always. The drinks were flowing, the boys were rolling, and all-in-all it was just a good time. We even scheduled our next few episodes for you!

We also may have mentioned One Piece and AI at some point, but dive into those at your own discretion. Cheers!

Book of the Month: https://www.amazon.com/Last-Christmas-Brian-Posehn/dp/1582406766

Topics of the Month:
One Piece - https://www.crunchyroll.com/series/GRMG8ZQZR/one-piece?srsltid=AfmBOor1DiP7YLr6r5YGNozS_Fka6ek28I_TtDnpKFt3kRKYVgqrBmia

Dispatch (episode coming soon!) - https://store.steampowered.com/app/2592160/Dispatch/

Spirits of the Month: Nothing specific. Anything that makes you jolly lol

It's time to give Thanks! And we're thankful for the amount of readable material out in the ether - because without it, what else would we bring to the table?

This month is something special - our very first Battle of the Genres as Novel Spirits! One genre, two books, one victor. Jacob and Michael face off to see who can bring the top sample of Magical Realism. Piranesi or Blade of the Immortal!

Piranesi - https://www.amazon.com/Piranesi-Susanna-Clarke/dp/1635577802

Blade of the Immortal - https://www.amazon.com/Blade-Immortal-Omnibus-Hiroaki-Samura/dp/1506701248

The drinks varied for this episode because there wasn't a set theme to work with, so bring out your favorite and enjoy all the same. Any and all feedback welcome!

And don't forget to like, subscribe, and comment/vote for your chance to win some amazing studio prizes. Subscribers (and voters!) are auto-enrolled in our new monthly raffle, where you can win studio merch, books, comics, games, and more.

As always, Cheers! Until next time.

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